can chickens do a chicken head count?

[kubotafoot]

My roosters do NOT go to bed if all their hens aren't in. They stay and crow and crow to call the last ones in, but they do NOT....ever....go to bed when there is a down number. Not sure they can add and subtract, but they know their flock and a good roo will put his life out on the line for his flock. We had a hawk fly over and he gave the call and all the hens scattered into the barn or under shrubs, but he stood in the center of the drive and just looked up. I was impressed how much they care and look out for their flock.

 

[kubotafoot]

I do believe chickens have real feelings.I have had birds partner up (usually two of the same breed, has happened many times), and when one of the birds has been killed or died the other one has gone into what seem to be a deep depression.

"Birds of a feather, flock together...." Yes, Indeed they do here at my farm. We had a power outage and there was no power at the barn for a few days. I went out to see 5 hens huddled by the back doo in the early morning. Upon closer look, I see their friend, Tangerine, on her back with legs sticking up in the air....dead. I believe she fell off the perch or was pushed off accidently and as they can't see in the dark, fell and broke her neck. Her friend were gathered around her. Were they protecting her from other hens? Were they having a wake? Who knows, but it sent chills up my spine when I saw it and I know the barn was much more quiet for a few days. We had to have a goat put down by the vet and she said we should encourage the other barn residents to see him after death. One goat didn't want to leave him....one got close and then jumped aside and went back to his stall and the heard head sniffed and touched and "talked" and then left. Some of the hens came over to inspect ands some scratched and pecked near him, but all were subdued and kind. The vet said they need to have some type of closure, especially if they have been together for some time and every animal will treat the change in their own way. amazing....just amazing to me.

 

[CrazyTownChick]

oh man, the “only if it’s one of their favorites” part has me dying.

rex: hey, Burt, one of the hens are missing.
burt: oh shit, who is it?
r: i think it’s copper
b: oh. meh, she’ll be fine
r: no, wait, it’s reeses
b: HOLD ON, REESES, IM COMING TO SAVE YOU

That is a great screenplay! Hilarious, love it! Are you a screenwriter?

 

[CrazyTownChick]

My roosters do NOT go to bed if all their hens aren't in. They stay and crow and crow to call the last ones in, but they do NOT....ever....go to bed when there is a down number. Not sure they can add and subtract, but they know their flock and a good roo will put his life out on the line for his flock. We had a hawk fly over and he gave the call and all the hens scattered into the barn or under shrubs, but he stood in the center of the drive and just looked up. I was impressed how much they care and look out for their flock.

that's awesome!

 

[CrazyTownChick]

"Birds of a feather, flock together...." Yes, Indeed they do here at my farm. We had a power outage and there was no power at the barn for a few days. I went out to see 5 hens huddled by the back doo in the early morning. Upon closer look, I see their friend, Tangerine, on her back with legs sticking up in the air....dead. I believe she fell off the perch or was pushed off accidently and as they can't see in the dark, fell and broke her neck. Her friend were gathered around her. Were they protecting her from other hens? Were they having a wake? Who knows, but it sent chills up my spine when I saw it and I know the barn was much more quiet for a few days. We had to have a goat put down by the vet and she said we should encourage the other barn residents to see him after death. One goat didn't want to leave him....one got close and then jumped aside and went back to his stall and the heard head sniffed and touched and "talked" and then left. Some of the hens came over to inspect ands some scratched and pecked near him, but all were subdued and kind. The vet said they need to have some type of closure, especially if they have been together for some time and every animal will treat the change in their own way. amazing....just amazing to me.

wow that is truly amazing! Thanks for sharing. I commented to my hubby the other day that they seem to be forming friendships at 10 weeks old, and mostly with the hens of the same breed. A couple crossover friendships between breeds, but they definitely DO seem to look out for each other. Especially I notice when we let them free range for an hour at a time under supervision. They stay pretty much together in the flock, look for their friends, and besties hang out together. So cute and heartwarming.

 

[Karen Glatz]

I don't know if they would miss individuals who were missing in a flock, but they are social and don't want to be alone. Though... My rooster does like to be the last one in the coop. I'll pay attention tonight to see if he waits when I'm not herding them in because I want to go inside.

When a big dog jumped my fence and killed 5 of my 6 hens, the girl who was left alive did miss her flock. She constantly paced the fence, tried to get over it and called for her mates for hours at a time. It was end of march and I started a new flock of peeps, but I also felt bad for her since the little ones wouldn't be going out for weeks.

I found 2 six week old pullets and gave her a new little flock to make her feel better. It worked. I watched them for two days before I felt OK to leave them alone in the same run. They watched her and imitated everything she did from a bit of a distance. She tolerated them and stole their warm mash but stopped pacing and calling for her old flock. 6 weeks later the peeps went out and were quickly assimilated into the current flock of 10.

 

[Sammy1122]

It’s crazy how animals provide more loyalty to one another then humans, that was Greta but sad story.

"Birds of a feather, flock together...." Yes, Indeed they do here at my farm. We had a power outage and there was no power at the barn for a few days. I went out to see 5 hens huddled by the back doo in the early morning. Upon closer look, I see their friend, Tangerine, on her back with legs sticking up in the air....dead. I believe she fell off the perch or was pushed off accidently and as they can't see in the dark, fell and broke her neck. Her friend were gathered around her. Were they protecting her from other hens? Were they having a wake? Who knows, but it sent chills up my spine when I saw it and I know the barn was much more quiet for a few days. We had to have a goat put down by the vet and she said we should encourage the other barn residents to see him after death. One goat didn't want to leave him....one got close and then jumped aside and went back to his stall and the heard head sniffed and touched and "talked" and then left. Some of the hens came over to inspect ands some scratched and pecked near him, but all were subdued and kind. The vet said they need to have some type of closure, especially if they have been together for some time and every animal will treat the change in their own way. amazing....just amazing to me.

 

[Anna77093]

I know my hens count their eggs, then if I let them hatch, they count the chicks. Sometimes if a hen goes broody I will take the brown eggs, but leave the blue, some accept this, but a few of my hens get pissed and switch nest boxes, they always pick a box with the same number of eggs as they originally had.

 

[fawnda]

I know my broody hen, who had 4 chicks she hatched, knew if one was missing or not and would cluck for the missing one. I think they can probably keep smaller numbers/headcounts in their heads. Maybe your rooster saw the one girl run that way and so he knew she was not with the others? Having eyes on the side of their heads, they ave excellent peripheral vision.

 

[jsr5]

"Birds of a feather, flock together...." Yes, Indeed they do here at my farm. We had a power outage and there was no power at the barn for a few days. I went out to see 5 hens huddled by the back doo in the early morning. Upon closer look, I see their friend, Tangerine, on her back with legs sticking up in the air....dead. I believe she fell off the perch or was pushed off accidently and as they can't see in the dark, fell and broke her neck. Her friend were gathered around her. Were they protecting her from other hens? Were they having a wake? Who knows, but it sent chills up my spine when I saw it and I know the barn was much more quiet for a few days. We had to have a goat put down by the vet and she said we should encourage the other barn residents to see him after death. One goat didn't want to leave him....one got close and then jumped aside and went back to his stall and the heard head sniffed and touched and "talked" and then left. Some of the hens came over to inspect ands some scratched and pecked near him, but all were subdued and kind. The vet said they need to have some type of closure, especially if they have been together for some time and every animal will treat the change in their own way. amazing....just amazing to me.

It is the discovering of this kind of interaction and complex social structure that has me completely smitten with my Birds. I am wanting to add some others. It has probably been there before in my life as I grew up on a farm but when you look at them as purely live stock you miss alot of that. being disabled slows me down and I spend more time just sitting and watching I am daily amazed by them.